What We Do | College Advisers | Other People at OUSA | Contact Us
The Office of Undergraduate Studies and Advising (OUSA) is the central advising and information resource for students in Weinberg College. It's a place to go whenever you want to talk about academic issues - about what courses to take or what major to select, about your progress on degree requirements, about problems you're having or special opportunities you're thinking about exploring, and about any other academic concern you may have. It's also a place to go when you're unsure of where to turn for advice. At the OUSA you can meet with a College Adviser or with one of the deans or staff members with specific responsibilities related to the undergraduate program in Weinberg College. If we're not the right people for you to see, we can usually tell you who is. Contact information for the OUSA is available online.
The OUSA also keeps many reference materials on hand, including general information on the requirements of the University and the College, an extensive library of law school catalogs, and applications for some graduate and professional school tests and programs.
When students visit the Office of Undergraduate Studies and Advising (OUSA), they often meet with a College Adviser. College Advisers are faculty members who hold regularly scheduled office hours each week and see students by appointment or on a drop-in basis. All College Advisers are trained to deal with a wide range of topics, including but not limited to choice of major, scheduling of classes, planning for study abroad, permission for overloads, interschool transfer, permission for incompletes, and requirements for graduation.
Every sophomore in Weinberg College is assigned to a College Adviser. That person will be your College Adviser until you graduate. In addition, some College Advisers have special areas of responsibility or expertise. For example, they may specialize in advising students who are interested in certain careers or in working with students who are thinking about requesting exceptions to certain College requirements. In some cases, therefore, someone other than your assigned College Adviser may be the best person for you to see. When you make an appointment to see a College Adviser, explain the reason for the meeting to make sure that you'll see the right person.
Learn more about the current WCAS College Advisers.Not all of your interactions with people at the OUSA will be with College Advisers. Many questions and paperwork issues are handled by staff members on the first floor of the office. For other issues, you may instead (or in addition) meet with one of the deans who works in the OUSA: the Assistant Dean for Academic and Advanced Standing (currently Richard Weimer), the Assistant Dean for Freshman (currently Lane Fenrich), or the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Academic Affairs (currently Mary Finn).
